God is blessed forever

Revelation 5:13, 22:1-5.

[Series on: The Blessed]

Scriptures associate “blessed” with disciples, creation, the church, and God. But often, when associated with God, we see the phrase “blessed forever”. The passage in Revelation uses eternal worship and reward to show us God’s eternal blessedness.

Eternal worship

The passage (in Rev 5:13) records the very words of every creature in heaven and on earth at the sight of God—at the throne of the Father and the Lamb (Jesus);

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honour and glory and might forever and ever!”

This truth about God being blessed forever is echoed throughout Scripture (Ps 72:17-20, 89:52, 113:2, Rom 9:5, 2 Cor 11:31). This conveys the eternal worship due to God. It also speaks of God as the source of eternal reward or blessings.

Eternal reward

The passage (in Rev 22:1-5) shows that the eternal reward of worshippers (v3) flows from God.

New body (Healing): comes from the leaves of the tree of life, which is watered by the river of life flowing from God’s throne. (vv1-2).
New name: is the name of God (v4).
Rule: is the eternal rule with God and the Lamb (v5b).

V5a shows that God will eternally satisfy every need by being the provision—“They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light”.

God’s eternal blessings are found in God Himself! Never apart from Himself. As C. S. Lewis rightly said, “God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.” The mistake of the first creation in Eden was seeking life apart from God which led to death, but the joy of God’s new creation is finding life in God’s eternal gift.

The eternal gift God gave us is His Son, Jesus Christ, so that anyone who receives Him will have eternal life...an unending relationship with the God who is blessed forever.

Reflect & Pray

What would it mean for you to desire more of God’s eternal blessings?

Thank you, God, who is blessed forever more. Help us to desire more of Jesus, Your eternal gift to us, amen.

God bless you exceedingly,
Sam.

True life begins with accepting the word

Mark 4:1-20, 26-29. (The Parables of the Sower and Growing Seed). How do you respond to God’s word? Jesus shows that the continuous experience of true life only comes from accepting the word of God. Anything short, at its best, only yields momentary joy. In teaching about the Kingdom of God (v11, 26), Jesus speaks of a farmer who goes to sow seeds and scatters them on all kinds of soils, with the good soil truly yielding life (v1-8, 26). The seed is the word of God (v14), and the soils are how we respond to the word. But there is only one right response. Accept it The parable shows that just as the kind of soil affects the yield, the kind of response affects the experience of the Kingdom of God. It’s like signing up for an online service, say Amazon; there are terms and conditions open to all. You can either ignore it, tiptoe around it, cons...

Accompanied by unfailing love

Ruth 1:1-22. I hope you had an enjoyable Christmas break. Happy New Year! The Book of Ruth has been called the most beautiful short story ever written because of its simple narrative. A narrative that shows how God’s provision for our needs or challenges is often woven into the simple acts of human kindness. Chapter 1 shows the kindness of a daughter-in-law, Ruth, to her mother-in-law, Naomi (v8, 16, 22), and we’ll see God at work through that. But first, the passage sets the context by introducing us to Naomi’s loss… Naomi lost her family… When Naomi (which means pleasant) is first introduced, we are told of her loss. A woman in a foreign land who lost her family (v1-5). She feels bitter, empty and afflicted by the Lord (v21). Why so? …Because Naomi knows Israel’s God to be the Almighty—Sovereign. He can bring famine to ...

God’s mercy: sovereign over all

Jonah 1:1-16. I hope you had an enjoyable Christmas break. Happy New Year! Have you ever had one of those sat-nav moments where no matter how far off course you go, it keeps rerouting and repeating “make a u-turn.” That’s the story of Jonah. God sends him north-east to Nineveh, but Jonah heads west to Joppa instead. And the book shows us something remarkable: God’s response to people on the wrong route isn’t abandonment, but mercy. Like a sat-nav, He keeps rerouting and calling us back to Himself. Jonah takes us on a journey into the nature of God’s mercy. In today’s passage, as we see the striking stubbornness of Jonah toward God, we begin to see the saving sovereignty of God’s mercy. In spite of Jonah’s refusal of God’s directive, God is still in control. He commands and can change all things (Ps 148:5, Jer 32:17). ...

A Devotional Life

Search This Blog